The White House is planning to poach a leading Republican congressional trade staffer to fill a key post on its National Economic Council, according to administration and private sector sources with knowledge of the staff move. [ADAM BEHSUDI , ANDREW RESTUCCIA and BEN WHITE | June 6, 2017 |Politico] Everett Eissenstat, now the chief Republican trade counsel for the Senate…
HAMBURG — Negotiations for a joint statement on trade at the G20 leaders summit are running into similar roadblocks to previous negotiations for communiqués under the Trump presidency, including wording on protectionism and “reciprocal” trade — which the U.S. administration has pushed for in every joint statement with foreign leaders — and whether the World…
Automobile sales may be slowing, e-commerce is putting the squeeze on bricks-and-mortar stores, and overall economic growth is limp. But the labor market has nevertheless managed to charge ahead. [PATRICIA COHEN| July 7, 2017 |The New York Times] Employers added an impressive 222,000 jobs in June, the government reported on Friday. Although the jobless rate ticked up slightly to 4.4…
Folks who passed their intro econ class know that it is net exports (exports minus imports) that affect output and employment. Not exports alone. Nonetheless, we find people like Washington Post columnist Robert Samuelson telling readers that Trump’s decision to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) might undermine his agenda because “being outside these agreements [a…
By Jeff Ferry, CPA Research Director At last month’s Paris Air Show, China showed off its latest military drone, an unmanned intelligent computer-controlled vehicle called the CH-5. Military experts were impressed. The CH-5 has a range of 20,000 kilometers (12,000 miles), and can stay aloft for up to 50 hours. “You can just imagine a…
Any country that devalues their currency in order to take unfair advantage of the United States, which is many countries, will be met with sharply. And that includes tariffs and taxes. –Candidate Trump, Pennsylvania, 6/28/16 [John R. Hansen | July 7, 2017 | ABCD Now] Messages like this resonated with voters across the nation during the…
Washington ~ The Trump administration has made public its intent to seek amendments to the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement known as the KORUS FTA. The administration has said that USTR will request a “special session” under Article 22.2 of the agreement, which will start a 30-day clock requiring both countries’ officials to meet and discuss…
Following President Trump’s promise to renegotiate the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement “right now,” an administration official told Inside U.S. Trade the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will formally request that both countries’ joint committee convene in a so-called “special session” to consider potential amendments to the deal – a provision that sources said has never been used before, and one that runs counter…
By Jeff Ferry, CPA Research Director Press reports emerging on Monday, July 3rd, suggest that President Trump is pushing for a special 30-day review to amend the U.S.-South Korean trade deal known as KORUS. Last week, South Korean President Moon Jae-In said he wanted no change to KORUS, so it’s not yet clear what will…
United States Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer testified on the House Ways and Means hearing on trade policy Thursday, June 22nd stating that trade is a top priority and that intend to continue working at a productive pace in order to level the playing field for American workers, ranchers, farmers, and businesses. “USTR also is working to…